Some West Texas lawmakers in Washington agree that Congress’ compromise averting a prolonged tumble off the ‘fiscal cliff’ didn’t address important issues, most notably decreased spending by the Federal government.

Capping a holiday season political spectacle that featured enough high and low notes for a Broadway musical, the GOP-run House voted final approval of the measure by 257-167 late Tuesday.

That came after the Democratic-led Senate used a wee-hours 89-8 roll call to assent to the bill, belying the partisan brinkmanship that colored much of the path to the final deal.

The bill would boost the top 35 percent income tax rate to 39.6 percent for incomes exceeding $400,000 for individuals and $450,000 for couples, while continuing decade-old income tax cuts for everyone else. In his re-election campaign last year President Barack Obama had vowed to boost rates on earnings at somewhat lower levels — $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for families.

Scores of GOP lawmakers voted for the measure, reversing a quarter-century of solid Republican opposition to boosting any tax rates at all.

U.S. Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Clarendon, said he voted for the legislation in part because it created stability in the tax code.

“I continue to hear from many people in our part of Texas that stability in the tax code is necessary for their families and their businesses,” he said in a statement late Tuesday. “Making the current tax rates permanent for the vast majority of Americans, as this bill does, is a major accomplishment.”

Thornberry said the measure included other important provisions, including a short-term extension to the farm bill, that are important to the people in his congressional district.

But Thornberry said Congress will continue to weigh in on the nation’s fiscal problems.

“This bill is a missed opportunity to take meaningful action to deal with our very serious spending problem, and I supported efforts to have significant cuts included in this measure,” he said. “I also believe that some parts of the bill discourage work and encourage dependency on the government, but tonight is not our last opportunity to fight for reforms and significant cuts.”

U.S. Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-Lubbock, said he voted against the measure partly because it didn’t include key spending cuts.

“I support smaller government, lower taxes and a balanced budget, but the Senate plan increased taxes and included no substantial spending cuts,” he said in a statement Tuesday. “The plan called for increasing taxes by $41 for every one dollar reduction in spending, further funding the government’s spending habit.”

On Wednesday, Neugebauer said the deal leaves the job of trimming the nation’s budget up to the next Congress, which will be sworn in Thursday.

“You can’t take anything off the table,” he said, listing cuts to food stamps, Medicaid/Medicare and Social Security reform as areas to look for savings.

The “fiscal cliff” compromise leaves a big part of the nation’s budget crisis still dangling. Here’s some of what’s been resolved and what’s left hanging:

WHAT’S DONE

The year-end “fiscal cliff” deadline did inspire compromise.

■ Payroll taxes are going up, after being trimmed for two years to help stimulate the economy. For most workers, that means paychecks will shrink by 2 percent — another $1,000 for someone earning $50,000 a year.

■ The top 1 percent are getting socked with higher income tax rates. Income over $400,000 for individuals or $450,000 for couples will be taxed at a top rate of 39.6 percent, up from 35 percent. Everyone else gets to keep their current income tax rates.

■ Americans will pay higher taxes on investments. Rates for their capital gains and dividends are rising from 15 to 20 percent. And the tax on estates worth more than $5 million will go up to 40 percent, from 35 percent.

■ The alternative minimum tax, designed to keep the wealthy from using loopholes to avoid taxes, will be permanently indexed for inflation so it doesn’t snare middle- and upper-middle-income households.

■ Tax breaks for families with children, college tuition and low-income workers will continue for five years.

■ A scheduled 27 percent cut in Medicare payments to doctors will be held off for a year.

LEFT HANGING

AUTOMATIC SPENDING CUTS: The bipartisan deal approved by the Senate and House put off dealing with the nearly $110 billion in automatic spending cuts set for this year.

Unless Congress stops them by March 1, automatic cuts of about 8 or 9 percent will sweep through nearly all federal agencies, with half the cuts targeting the military.

Republicans worry that the Pentagon would be hamstrung; Democrats say vital federal programs would be crippled.

DEBT LIMIT SHOWDWON: Around the same time, the United States would lose its ability to borrow money to pay its debts, unless Congress acts. That’s a big deal, especially since the government borrows 30 to 40 cents of every dollar it spends.

The U.S. bumped against its $16.4 trillion borrowing limit Monday, but the Treasury Department is using special accounting measures to avoid default for now. Private economists said those methods could probably stretch through early March. After that, the United States would risk default.

THE NATIONAL DEBT: The “fiscal cliff” was originally designed to force lawmakers to confront trillion-dollar annual budget deficits that pile the nation’s debts higher each year. As larger and larger numbers of baby boomers receive retirement benefits in coming years, the strain on the budget will be unsustainable.

Republicans want to rein in Medicare, Social Security and other entitlement programs more sharply. Democratic lawmakers object. And tampering with programs so popular with voters is never easy.